Tighten your seat belts for one hell of a ride this NRL season

THE odd off-field drama aside, has there been a more productive build-up to an NRL season than during the past few months?

And on a fair-dinkum basis, the theatre engulfing the players away from the game simply adds to the intrigue and whets our already voracious appetite for kick-off day.

Season 2013 has the ingredients to be the best in years.

During the off-season, a new CEO was appointed, a $1 billion-plus TV deal was struck by the NRL, a sponsorship and digital rights partnership worth more than $100 million over five years was signed with Telstra and a new Collective Bargaining Agreement was reached between the players and the NRL.

That financial security shapes a near-perfect future for the game and its shareholders - the clubs, the players, the sponsors and the fans.

But let's face it - we, the rank and file are only vaguely concerned about those small details.

What we want is brilliant on-field action, a competition where we scratch our heads each weekend before filing our tips, and an end-of-season points table that is top heavy.